In reply to AB's Islamisising Modernity (April 20), I did not choose Israel as the model of secularism. Indeed, "Jewish ideology of Zionism, a mutation of Judaism" is the opposite of secularism.

The contents of my letter Israel lesson shows why secularism is best (April 19) should not be construed by its title caption which was not chosen by me, just as a book's contents should not be judged by its cover. In doing so, the writer missed as well as proved the point of the letter.

The point made by me was that when religion (in general) is publicly organised extending beyond private observance, and overzealously embraced, with ardour and faith, by any group of people, community or country, it will be held as more superior and true than the religions or lack thereof of others.

This tends to encourage sectarianism and bigotry. As the lessons of history amply show, it provides the classic ideological platform for extremist zealots to perpetrate violence, conflicts and persecution on the "other".

To secularise government and laws is not to discourage the peoples' religiosity. Hardly. A secular state respects and protects the right to religious worship s plan to ban tourists from wearing bikinis under a new dress code to be issued and its advice to hotels to build separate swimming pools for men and women as reported in Terengganu to ban bikinis in new dress code for tourists (April 20).

If this move by Terengganu state government cannot by any stretch of imagination be considered a case of modernisation of Islam, does it constitute, to the writer, an example of Islamisation of modernity?

If so, is it good and will it benefit the state or the people of Terengganu?

One notes that tourism is the second largest earner income in the state after oil and gas. The state is renowned for its beaches. How is a foreign female tourist to swim or suntan on these beaches fully or partially clothed?

We also note that there is no ban on men going half-naked in swimming trunks. Only bodies of women are targeted.

In this age of modernity in which equality to woman is the mantra of the day and constitutionally guaranteed, why is only the woman's body being targeted?

To protect a woman's modesty and prevent her from being accosted by lechers and rapists? There again the Taliban argument that blames the entire ills of society on female bodies — which other than the traditional religious justification is however unsupported by any empirical or logical justification.

The Terengganu state government's policies in contrast to Federal government's brings to sharp focus the writer's poser: which is more beneficial in practical terms — the Islamisation of modernity or modernisation of Islam?

It will soon be seen whether foreign tourists and investors will flock to or flee from Terengganu.